Are hearing aids actually worth the money? The cost is often a concern for people who deal with hearing loss. Still, when you invest in a house you don’t learn the price and say, “well, being homeless is less expensive”! Cost isn’t the only value consideration when it comes to getting hearing aids.
You really need to ask yourself what the consequences of not buying hearing aids will be and what the actual value of getting hearing aids is.” The fact is, there is a monetary cost for choosing not to purchase hearing aids. You should factor these costs into your choice as well. Recognize why you will save money over time if you choose to buy hearing aids.
You Will Wind up Spending More if You Decide on Cheaper Hearing Aids
While searching the hearing aids market, you will undoubtedly come across cheaper devices that appear to be less expensive. If you shop for hearing aids on the internet, you will most likely find some that cost less than a nice dinner.
You get what you pay for in quality when you buy over-the-counter hearing devices. These devices are not authentic hearing aids, they’re actually amplification devices similar to earpods. They just amplify all of the sound around you, including unwanted noise.
Customized programming is the best feature of a high-quality hearing aid, that you don’t have if you use a cheap hearing device. You can attain an excellent sound by having a quality hearing aid tuned to address your distinct hearing needs.
The batteries in store bought hearing aids are also low quality. It gets very expensive when you have to keep replacing dead batteries. If you use the amplification device every day, you might possibly wind up changing the battery up to a couple of times per day. The battery is most likely to die when you need it most, also, so prepare to bring lots of spares around with you wherever you go. Do you actually save money if you have to exchange worn out batteries every day?
Higher quality hearing aids last a lot longer because they have more efficient electronics. Some models even have rechargeable batteries, getting rid of the need for repeated replacements.
Issues With Your Career
Deciding to not wear hearing aids, or wearing cheap ones will be costly at your job. A 2013 study published in The Hearing Journal says that less money is made by people who have hearing loss – as much as 25 percent less, and are more likely to be jobless.
And why? There are lots of variables involved, but communication is critical in just about every trade and that’s the major factor. You have to be capable of hearing what your manager says so that you can deliver good results. And in order to assist customers or clients, you must poses good listening skills. If you need to spend the entire conversation trying to decipher what words people are saying, you’re most likely missing the whole content. To put it simply, if you cannot take part in conversations, it’s very hard to succeed at work.
The struggle to hear on the job will take it’s toll on you physically, also. Even if you are able to get through a day with sub-par hearing, the anxiousness that comes with worrying about whether you heard something correctly and the energy required to make out as much as you can, will cause you to be fatigued and stressed out. Here are some effects of stress:
- Health of your relationships
- Your ability to sleep
- Your immune system
- Your overall quality of life
As a consequence, your income will decrease due to the impact on your work efficiency.
Having to go to the ER more often
hearing loss comes with safety concerns. It will be hazardous for you to drive a vehicle or cross the street without quality hearing aids. How can you stay clear of something if you’re not able to hear it? How about public warning systems like a twister alert or smoke alarm?
For jobs including a manufacturing facility or a construction site, you have to be capable of hearing in order for you and your coworkers to stay safe. So your safety, as well as your career options, will be restricted if you don’t wear the quality hearing aids you require.
You also need to take into account financial security. Did the waitress say that you owe 25 or 85 dollars? What did the sales representative say regarding the features of the tv you’re checking out and do you really need them? You may end up paying more than you should for features you don’t really need.
Brain Health
One of the most crucial problems that come with hearing loss is the increased risk of dementia. The New England Journal of Medicine reports that Alzheimer’s disease costs individuals more than 56,000 dollars each year. Dementia accounts for 11 billion dollars in Medicare costs annually.
The chance of getting dementia and Alzheimer’s disease is a risk factor associated with hearing loss. It is calculated that someone with serious, untreated hearing loss increases their possibility of brain impairment by five fold. The chance of getting dementia goes up by three times with moderate hearing loss and doubles with even minimal hearing loss. Hearing aids bring the danger back to a normal level.
There’s little doubt that a hearing aid will cost you a bit. If you look at all the problems that come with going without one or buying a lower quality device, it’s unquestionably a sound financial choice. Consult a hearing care professional to find out more about hearing aids.